Marines Under Investigation for Sharing Nude Photos of Servicewomen

Reports suggest that some Marines shared naked photographs of female Marines, veterans, and other women on a secret Facebook page, some of which were taken without their knowledge, prompting a Defense Department investigation.

Scandalous pictures shared of fellow servicewomen:

“Marines United,” is the Facebook page where the pictures were shared. It had a membership of active-duty and retired male Marines, Navy Corpsman and British Royal Marines.

According to officials, the pictures on the page were of identified female military members and unidentifiable women in various stages of undress, and included obscene comments about some of the women

The photographs have been taken down, and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service is now investigating.

On Sunday, Gen. Robert B. Neller, Marine Corps commandant refused to comment directly about the ongoing investigation, however he stated “For anyone to target one of our Marines, online or otherwise, in an inappropriate manner, is distasteful and shows an absence of respect.”

The number of active-duty Marines and other service members involved or are under investigation is not yet knows. At least one government contractor was removed from his job after posting a link to the photographs, according to an unnamed Marine Corps official.

The Center for Investigative Reporting was the first to report on the investigation. While War Horse, a nonprofit news organization run by Marine veteran Thomas Brennan, was the first to reveal the activity.

Marine Corps spokesman Capt. Ryan E. Alvis said: “We are thankful that Thomas Brennan, a Marine veteran, notified the Marine Corps and NCIS about what he witnessed on the ‘Marines United’ page. It allowed us to take immediate action to have the explicit photos taken down and to prepare to support potential victims.”

Steps in the investigation:

More than two dozen active-duty women, officers and enlisted, were identified by their rank, full name and location in the photographs on the Facebook page, according to the CIR report. While photographs of active duty and veteran women were also posted and linked through a Google Drive link.

The CIR report said that.

At the Marine Corps’ request, Facebook and Google deleted the social media accounts behind the sharing. According to an internal Marine Corps document, a former Marine maintained the Google Drive and that it had a following of 30,000.

According to the document, the NCIS investigation is “in support of two individuals affected by postings.” It also stated that a Marine could potentially be charged with violations of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for posting an explicit photo of another person. A Marine could also be subjected to criminal proceedings or adverse administrative actions for directly participating in, encouraging or condoning such actions.